Boston Pizza Grace

There are few places that I enjoy spending time with my family like Boston Pizza. The food is reliable, the service is great, and the ambiance is above average. Before having kids, it provided a great spot for Kayla and I to have quality dates and now that our little bambino is old enough to order off of the kids menu, we love going as a family.

A couple of weeks ago, we made plans for Kayla to pick me up for my lunch break to head out for a quick bite together in the midst of a busy day. So, as we headed east on Kenmount from my office trying to decide what would be quick but not too unhealthy, we remembered that BP had a express lunch menu. We quickly decided that we could swoop in, grab a quick lunch, and still be back to the office in an hour.

Well…not so much. Maybe it was because many other people had the same plan or that they were short-staffed, but either way, the jaunt turned into 1.5 hours which included a 45 min wait for the meals. Being one who gets anxious over being either bit late for anything (just ask Kayla), I must say that I wasn’t enjoying this visit as much as I normally did. However, we kept quiet and tried to make the most of the time together and the fact that Kendrick was having his very first pizza was cool. Then, totally unexpected, the manager (John) came out and apologized for the delay and told us the meal was on them. Really? Well, thank you BP…all of a sudden any disappointment seemed trumped by the kind gesture.

It wasn’t the first time that I received something I didn’t quite deserve. I mean I still got to enjoy the food and the atmosphere. We still had a great waitress tend on us. And still we owed nothing!? Funny, yet powerful, how an act of grace silences opposition.

All through history victories have been won and injustice has been fought by those who have been champions of grace in the face of opposition. One of the greatest examples was the focus of a hit movie in 07 called ‘Amazing Grace’ (Amazing Grace – The Movie). His name is William Wilberforce and he headed the parliamentary campaign against the British slave trade for twenty-six years until the passage of the Slave Trade Act in 1807 (Slave Trade Act). For 26 years he raised the issue in the British Parliament to what seemed to be unbeatable opposition. But Wilberforce was determined to extend the same grace he had received from God to the African slaves and be a voice for the voiceless. He persevered though it seemed impossible for their plight to be truly heard…let alone resolved.

Looking for a great movie to rent…check out this trailer:

As I am compelled to inspiration by the story of Wilberforce and appreciate random acts of grace in everyday life, I realize it all pales in comparison to the grace God offers. Even after separation from God came to all of us through the wrong of the very first man, God remedies it with one life – one that provides exactly what I need but don’t deserve Romans 15:5. Pretty awesome…that kind of grace inspires what this world lacks – hope.

I think I’ll leave you with a lyric from one of my fav bands as a teenager. The Newsboys wrote and performed this epic line:

“When we don’t get what we deserve, that’s a real good thing, a real good thing. When we get what we don’t deserve, that’s a real good thing, a real good thing…check your balance through the years, all accounts are in arrears. Guilt is bitter, grace is sweet. Park it here on the mercy seat.”